Over the time they took to enjoy their three course meal, Liz learnt a lot about Raymond without ever feeling like she knew who he really was. His stories had her spellbound and in fits of laughter, often at the same time. He had clearly travelled widely and been to a vast array of places of which she'd never even heard. He also asked her about her life and her aspirations but Liz felt that, compared to his stories, her life seemed unutterably dull and so she encouraged him to talk more, rather than worrying about whether she was boring him.

Red was more than happy to talk away nineteen to the dozen, although he'd have preferred that Liz wasn't as shy as she appeared to be regarding her own life tales. However, he could sense that she was happier when he was being a raconteur and so placed himself in that role for her benefit. By the time they'd finished up with dessert, both of them were more than a little tipsy. Thankfully Red was on his best behaviour, a long way from the broken man who had near stumbled into Liz's restaurant a couple of days earlier.

As the waiter cleared away their last few dishes, Red asked him to bring them coffee and one last bottle of the red which they had so enjoyed and then to retire for the rest of the evening. Once the waiter had done his bidding, he gave them each a quick bow and disappeared away from the roof terrace.

'Did he just bow to us?', Liz asked, giggling.

'I'm afraid so. I swear I didn't ask him to do that', Red replied, an amused smirk on his face as he watched Liz shaking her head.

'Well, I'm sure glad they don't want me to do anything like that in my restaurant'

Red laughed and leant across the table to hold Liz's hand in his own, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles and smiling at her, 'That wouldn't do at all. Someone like you should never bow to anyone'.

Liz blushed and looked down at their joined hands. She tightened her hand around Red's fingers and looked back up at him, 'Thank you for tonight, Raymond. It's been absolutely wonderful'.

He beamed at her, 'I'm so very glad to hear it. However, it's far too early to think about leaving, wouldn't you agree? How about a dance?'. As Red finished his sentence he stood up and held his hand out towards Liz.

Liz laughed but took his hand and stood up straight away. He then led them to the open area in the middle of the terrace and they got themselves into the traditional dancing positions. The music system was playing Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra classics and it was perfect to dance to, the mood just right for some romance. After a few teething problems, Liz caught on quickly to following Red's lead and soon they were moving around the floor with ease. After a few minutes, Liz felt herself relax, relieved that the few dance lessons she'd once had hadn't been a complete waste of time.

As they continued to move together across the floor, Liz decided to take the initiative. She thanked the gods of alcohol for giving her the courage to do it and then let go of Red's hand, allowing her own hand to travel up his arm and around his neck, behind which she clasped her hands together. She then rested her head on Red's chest and was gratified to hear that his heart was beating away far quicker than it should have been. Her closeness was having the desired effect.

Red turned his face into her hair and breathed in her scent. He got hints of strawberry and something that could only have been Liz's own scent and he inhaled deeply, savouring every bit of it. His hands had moved around to her back and he pulled her further into his embrace, relishing the feel of her womanly curves and warm skin beneath his fingers.

At this point Liz pulled back and looked into Red's eyes. He looked down at her, smiling at her so sweetly she couldn't help but smile back at him with equal affection. He then bent his head down towards her and kissed her gently on the lips. Only for a short moment but they both felt the spark that happened when their lips met. Pulling away, even after such a short kiss, the looks in each of their eyes were unmistakable. They now were both completely sure that the other one wanted the same as they did. Red's mouth opened as he felt his breathing rate increase and Liz stepped up on her toes to kiss him again. This time they kissed for nearly a minute, their tongues tangling and probing, small noises of contentment and enjoyment coming from them both. Towards the end of the kiss, Liz's hands slipped down and cupped Red's ass, pulling him as close to her as she could. She immediately felt the effect their kiss had had on him and couldn't help but push her hips further into his, enjoying the feel of his arousal against her.

Red then broke the kiss and looked into her eyes, his hand coming up to stroke her cheek, 'I'm sorry, please forgive me. I'm afraid my reaction to you is not entirely under my control'.

Liz smiled at him and reached her own hand to place over his, 'It's okay, Raymond. You're perfectly in control of yourself this time. In fact, I think it might be me who's going to be the one apologising tomorrow'.

Red laughed and whirled them around one more time, 'Oh, I highly doubt that. I can't imagine you're capable of doing anything that could ever be deserving of an apology'.

Liz pulled her head back and mock-frowned at him, 'You saying I'm predictable?'

'No, my dear. Just that you're a sweet, lovely person and…'

But before Red could finish his sentence he found his hand being pulled towards Liz and placed on her breast. Not knowing what to do or say, and having some unfortunate flashbacks to the restaurant, he merely stood there, staring at his hand as if it belonged to someone else.

Liz rolled her eyes and tightened her grip on his hand, forcing him to squeeze her breast. Red moaned and his eyes slid shut. Seizing the opportunity she leant into him and captured his mouth again, forcing her tongue inside and placing her free hand on the back of his neck to hold him in place. By the time they came up for air, they were both flushed and a little short of breath.

'Please tell me you're staying in this hotel tonight?'

'I wasn't going to…' But Red stopped talking and whipped out his phone. Two minutes later they were in the elevator heading down towards the seventh floor. Red was pinned against the elevator wall and trying desperately to keep track of how long they had before the doors opened.

When they got to room 712, the keycard was sitting in a envelope resting against the door, having been deposited there only seconds earlier by a bellhop who had been under strict instructions to have delivered it and be out of sight within a minute of leaving reception.

Red bent down and picked it up, Liz not missing her chance to slap his ass. He turned to her, the shocked look on his face quickly turning to a salacious grin. Ripping open the envelope, he yanked out the keycard and opened the door. Liz pushed him backwards into the room and before they knew it, Red was lying flat on the floor, Liz astride him.

'Sweetheart, are you sure we're not maybe going….' But once again, Liz cut him off with her mouth. She took a hold of each of his arms and pinned them behind his head, grinding herself down onto his pelvis.

Red was in heaven. He couldn't recall the last time he'd felt quite so happy to be entirely at someone else's mercy. He allowed Liz every bit of control she clearly relished, enjoying being at her whim.

Eventually she pulled away from him, allowing his arms to move freely. They instantly went to her waist and he gently squeezed her hips, loving the way they hadn't stopped moving atop his arousal.

'Raymond?'

'Yes', he managed to sigh out, breathily.

'You know you're a good man'

He frowned a little and she placed her index finger in the middle of his eyebrows, flattening out the crease that had appeared there.

'You are. Dembe has clearly forgiven you for whatever it is you think was your fault getting him hurt. And I forgive you for what happened at the restaurant. You don't need to feel so guilty all the time. Everyone makes mistakes. It's what you do afterwards that defines who you really are'.

Looking up into Liz's eyes, he felt himself falling for her in that exact moment. He didn't even notice that she was no longer writhing in his lap. Instead, her hands were cupping his cheeks, looking at him with unmistakeable fondness.

'Thank you for saying that'

She smiled down at him, leaning down to brush her lips over his, 'Now get your ass off the floor and take me to bed. I'm not fond of carpet burn'.

He laughed and sat up, pulling her with him as he stood. Lifting her up easily in one fluid movement, he carried her to the bedroom and placed her on the top of the bedspread with near reverence. Toeing off his shoes, he crawled up the bed to lie next to her. Liz tugged on his arm to encourage him to move on top of her and he needed no further invitation.

Over the course of the night, Red was reminded again and again of just how much he was forgiven and how his guilty feelings were something entirely unnecessary. Liz worshipped him with her words and her body and some time in the small hours they fell asleep, both utterly exhausted.

When Red awoke the following morning, he gazed down upon the beautiful head of brunette hair that was tucked up on his chest. Kissing the top of her forehead gently and lingeringly, he smiled to himself. He had no clue how it had happened, considering what an idiot he'd been this week, but for the first time in years his heart was full of joy and his spirit was light and free.

The End

Thank you to everyone who read this and special thanks to Dreamlover83, my beta ;-*